Hey, guess what? The Mets are scuffling again. It’s similar to all the previous struggles they’ve endured throughout the first couple of months of the 2023 season. But it’s feeling a little different now that Memorial Day has passed and we’re approaching the middle of June. There seems to be a lack of urgency — at least from what we’ve seen/heard publicly — and there’s only one man who can fix that: former Mets manager Terry Collins.
After Wednesday night’s loss to the Atlanta Braves, New York fell to 30-32 on the season, 7.5 games behind Atlanta in the NL East and 2.5 games back of the final NL Wild Card spot. Their latest loss is New York’s fifth in a row. It’s the first time the Mets have had a losing streak that long since September of 2021.
I thought Buck Showalter’s even-keel demeanor was perfect for this club last year. You’d have to imagine (read: hope) it still is. I can confirm that it’s not good for the fan base, though.
"Our guys will get what they're putting into this eventually"
– Buck Showalter pic.twitter.com/HrRG3Gb5YA
— SNY (@SNYtv) June 8, 2023
"We've got some guys that are capable of better, we just haven't been able to string a lot together"
Buck Showalter talks about the struggles of the Mets offense of late: pic.twitter.com/tYGOQXzKLI
— SNY (@SNYtv) June 7, 2023
He still believes in his players and his team, which is great. I mean — what’s the alternative, right? This is a squad that won 101 games last year, and the offense isn’t drastically different from a season ago. But things aren’t going the same way they were in 2022. And it just seems like there’s a little too much comfort in the clubhouse.
There’s a way for Buck to still believe in his guys while also lighting a fire underneath them. Instead of him doing it, the Mets should put Terry Collins on a plane to Atlanta immediately for a pre-game pep talk before Thursday’s finale.
TC had his faults, but it seemed like he found that balance between getting behind his players and making sure they didn’t get too comfortable.
And who knows — maybe stuff like this is happening behind closed doors and we don’t know about it. But from a public perception standpoint, it feels like the Mets are just waiting for things to change for the better.
Let’s hope they do because if they don’t, team owner Steve Cohen might finally lose patience and do something about it.
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
